Past projects 22
Accelerating Avid Readers
Funded Mar 27, 2018I am so proud of nurturing my student's enthusiasm for reading. They get so excited about new books in the classroom library and I am so happy that I can offer them stories of characters that offer relatable topics like pets, school and friendships. Before I was limited in the number of chapter books because I had previously taught younger grade levels. Now I can offer a wider selection that allows students to sample various series that they might not have encountered previously. Even more importantly, my students have become experts on setting up the classroom library while promoting student interests in new authors and characters.I feel so fortunate to have the luxury of offering a print rich environment for my students within the classroom. We have developed a check out system that they are upholding responsibly.
This was my first-year teaching second grade and I have witnessed the steady progression of my student's reading interests. More importantly, they have increased their stamina for reading. When I reflect back to September they were reading picture books series like Clifford, Pete The Cat and Fancy Nancy. By November I grew excited when they began to embrace series like Fly Guy, Amelia Badalia, Cam Jansen and Junie B. Jones. I grew anxious because I noticed that not all of my students had embraced chapter books and wondered how I could pique their interests. That was when I discovered their adoration of graphic novel series like Dogman, Diary of A Wimpy Kid and The Lunch Lady series that could covertly help them increase their stamina for reading and discovering favorite authors. Transitioning into chapter books helps prepare them for third grade and beyond. More recently, we have been studying different genres of fiction and non-fiction resources for them to build up their vocabulary and oral language and they have excelled! Research has found the impact of even reading with a child for just twenty minutes a day will have a lasting impact on their comprehension, vocabulary and background knowledge through reading a wide variety of text.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Mulder
This classroom project was brought to life by Ripple.Favorite Author Literacy Studies
Funded Jan 25, 2018This has been one of the most impactful projects yet as my student get to delve into learning new reading series. Our school's library had these series but it was for the entire school and my poor second graders had to wait their turn. Now, they are afforded access to them within the classroom and we have developed a check out system that they are upholding responsibly. Even reading with a child for just twenty minutes a day will have a lasting impact on their comprehension, vocabulary and background knowledge by reading a wide variety of text. Before I was limited in the number of chapter books because I had previously taught younger grade levels. Now I can offer a wide selection that allows students to sample various series that they might not have encountered previously. It is so rewarding to think how in September they were reading picture books series and have now transitioned into chapter books to readying them for third grade and beyond. More recently we have been studying different genres of fiction and non-fiction resources for them to build up their vocabulary and oral language. Even more importantly, my students have become experts on setting up the classroom library while promoting student interests in new authors and characters.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Mulder
This classroom project was brought to life by The First Million Fund and one other donor.Classroom Library
Funded Dec 27, 2017So excited about these new materials in my classroom library! I was pleasantly surprised at the versatility of the resources that will easily be applied towards social studies. Having books that reflect more diversity of characters lends more relatable characters for my students to encourage their interests in reading. My students are now able to check out books to take home so that their parents can read with them in the evenings to help make home to school connections. Even reading with a child for just twenty minutes a day will have a lasting impact on their comprehension, vocabulary and background knowledge by reading a wide variety of text. Before I was limited in the number of chapter books and now I can offer a wide selection that allows students to sample various series that they might not have encountered previously. More recently we have been studying fiction and non-fiction resources and I wanted to make sure to acquire more non-fiction for them to build up their vocabulary and oral language by providing more resources about the world around them. The encyclopedia was one of the greatest additions as a teaching tool as we have utilized index, glossary and other elements of non-fiction text feature this semester. Even more importantly, my students have become experts on setting up the classroom library while promoting leadership and responsibility within the classroom environment.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Mulder
Accelerated Reader Station
Funded Oct 6, 2017The technology of the iPads allows another resource for my students to pursue their love of reading. We are interested in embracing a paperless classroom and incorporating google classroom where we can utilize more activities that help encourage student engagement and increase the classroom rigor. They are able to utilize websites like epic.com for the added benefits of a digital library that will allow them to develop new interests and a passion for reading. We are looking at digging deeper into comprehension this year and concentrating on skill base strategies for genres like poetry, fables and reader's theater. Now they are able to access and peruse books at their leisure at the click of a button.
I hear conversations about favorite books and see them sharing passages from stories together. Their reading levels and vocabulary are soaring. The latest trends right now in our classroom are series like Cam Jansen, Junie B. Jones and Amelia Badalia. They are developing skills with technology that will service them in the future as our district. They are not intimidated or frightened of accessing the ipad. They are able to troubleshoot apps and understand updating software. We have been using programs like kahoot and nearpod in the classroom to review for our grade level tests and to master content specific content. My students also utilize another program known as istation as well to help with their reading. I am able to download it on the ipad and have my students get personalized interventions based on their reading abilities. I have become more of a facilitator in the classroom and they have become leaders.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Mulder
Digital Interventions
Funded Oct 2, 2017The technology of the iPads allows another resource for my students to pursue their love of reading. They are able to utilize websites like epic.com for the added benefits of a digital library that will allow them to develop new interests and a passion for reading. In the past books were limited to the classroom library and we were only able to switch out books from the school library once a week. Now they are able to access and peruse books at their leisure at the click of a button. I hear conversations about favorite books and see them sharing passages from stories together. Their reading levels and vocabulary are soaring. The latest trends right now in our classroom are series by authors like Mo Williams, fables and Pete the Cat.
I also love how they are developing the skills with technology that will service them in the future. They are not intimidated or frightened of accessing the ipad. They are able to troubleshoot apps and understand updating software. My students also utilize another program known as istation as well to help with their reading. I am able to download it on the ipad and have my students get personalized interventions based on their reading abilities. My entire class has become experts on setting up the ipad and connecting it to our smart board. They help with transitions from one subject to another and have favorite websites for brainbreaks like gonoodle.com that helps keep their creative juices flowing. I have become more of a facilitator in the classroom and they have become leaders.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Mulder
Classroom Library Resources
Funded Feb 9, 2017I try to provide my students with a school environment saturated in print. I will utilize these emergent readers to also send home so that their parents can read with them in the evenings to help make home to school connections. If I do not provide the materials sometimes my students will not be afforded the opportunity to continue their progress. It is my job to help them be successful and provide for them. Even reading with a child for just twenty minutes a day will have a lasting impact on their comprehension, vocabulary and background knowledge by reading a wide variety of text. More recently we have been studying fiction and non-fiction resources and I wanted to make sure to acquire more non-fiction for them to build up their vocabulary and oral language by providing more resources about the world around them. My students have been learning about the weather and the seasons. They adore books about animals. Adding these emergent readers to our classroom library will help target early literacy skills that they can pick out and develop an interest in. My entire class has become experts on setting up the classroom library and maintaining it.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Mulder
Digital Interventions
Funded Jan 30, 2017Thanks so much for all of the support this school year! My students are beyond grateful and I have seen such an improvement in their engagement. They are so confident in their abilities and even aide and encourage each other to celebrate individual accomplishments. They adore the programs that we use like epic books, istation and dreambox. I am so incredibly proud of the amount of independence that my students exhibit in internalizing personal expectations. They are so hardworking and dedicated to their education. I will make it a point to keep you updated on their progress as we strive to achieve new heights.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Mulder
Research Station
Funded Dec 28, 2016The technology of the chromebooks allows another resource for my students to pursue their love of reading. They are able to utilize websites like epic.com for the added benefits of a digital library that will allow them to develop new interests and a passion for reading at their fingertips. Now they are able to access books at their leisure at the click of a button every single day. I hear conversations about favorite books and see them sharing passages from stories together. Their reading levels and vocabulary are soaring. The latest trends right now in our classroom are books on puppies and dinosaurs. They have developed an interest in ghost stories and magicians. I also love how they are developing the skills with technology that will service them in the future. They are not intimidated or frightened. My entire class has become experts on setting up the chromebook and is now a classroom job. They help with transitions from one subject to another and have favorite websites for brainbreaks like gonoodle.com that helps keep their creative juices flowing. I have become more of a facilitator in the classroom and they have become leaders.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Mulder
This classroom project was brought to life by Google.org and 2 other donors.Digital Library
Funded Mar 26, 2016The technology of the ipad allows another resource for my students to pursue their love of reading. They are able to utilize websites like myon.com for the added benefits of a digital library that will allow them to develop new interests and a passion for reading. In the past books were limited to the classroom library and we were only able to switch out books from the school library once a week. Now they are able to access and peruse books at their leisure at the click of a button. I hear conversations about favorite books and see them sharing passages from stories together. Their reading levels and vocabulary are soaring. The latest trends right now in our classroom are books on puppies and dinosaurs.
I also love how they are developing the skills with technology that will service them in the future. They are not intimidated or frightened of accessing the ipad. This is a big deal because many of my students do not have access to technology in the home. My students also utilize another program known as istation as well to help with their reading. I am able to download it on the ipad and have my students get personalized interventions based on their reading abilities. My entire class has become experts on setting up the ipad and connecting it to our smart board. They help with transitions from one subject to another and have favorite websites for brainbreaks like gonoodle.com that helps keep their creative juices flowing. I have become more of a facilitator in the classroom and they have become leaders.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Mulder
Interactive Math Station
Funded Mar 10, 2016The added technology of the ipads is allowing for an additional resource for my students to pursue their love of math through interactive apps and math programs like dream box. In the past books were limited to the classroom library and we were only able to switch out books from the school library once a week. Now they are able to access and use these programs at their leisure at the click of a button and build up their confidence as mathematicians. I hear conversations about favorite programs and see them showing each other their progress together. Their math fluency levels and vocabulary are soaring.
I also love how they are developing the skills with technology that will service them in the future. They are not intimidated or frightened of accessing the ipad. This is a big deal because many of my students do not have access to technology in the home. My students also utilize another program known as istation as well to help with their reading through the ipads. I am able to download it on the ipads and have my students get personalized interventions based on their reading abilities. My entire class has become experts on setting up the ipads on the docking station and connecting it to our smart board. They help with transitions from one subject to another and have favorite websites for brainbreaks like gonoodle.com that helps keep their creative juices flowing. I have become more of a facilitator in the classroom and they have become leaders.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Mulder
This classroom project was brought to life by #BestSchoolDay and one other donor.